The present invention relates to a device for improving connection to a patient of an anesthesia-delivering catheter and an infusion source for the anesthesia.
Epidural and continuous spinal anesthesia are common anesthetic techniques used in operating rooms, hospital wards and in pain clinics. Such anesthetic techniques also find use by outpatients in homes for the treatment of chronic pain. Anesthesia is delivered to a patient through a thin, flexible catheter, the distal end of which penetrates the patient's body to deliver the anesthesia to a desired location, usually the epidural space. The proximal end of the catheter typically is connected to an infusion line that communicates with an infusion source for delivering the anesthesia to the catheter.
Currently, anesthesia is often delivered simply by joining together the infusion line and catheter and taping the joined unit to a tongue depressor, allowing the catheter to extend over the patient's shoulder and along the patient's back to a desired insertion point. Such a connection arrangement is not satisfactory as it can often lead to catheter kinking or disconnection, possibly resulting in contamination of the epidural system and/or inadequate delivery of anesthesia. The increased use of epidural anesthesia in ambulating patients has resulted in an increased incidence of catheter disconnection, kinking and breaking, and system contamination.
Another potential hazard encountered with the use of such anesthesia delivery systems is the inadvertent injection into the epidural catheter system of substances intended for intravenous or other sites. Such errors can have life threatening consequences.
Accordingly, there is a need for a more secure and reliable anesthesia delivery system that effectively joins an infusion source to an epidural catheter system.
It is thus an object of the invention to provide a system for safely and effectively delivering spinal and epidural anesthesia. Another object is to provide a patient-mountable device that facilitates infusion line and anesthesia-delivering catheter connection. A further object is to provide such a device which increases patient comfort and mobility. It is also an object to provide a device that facilitates safe and secure connection of an infusion source to a catheter system. Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention.